Potato chip manufacture



Aug. 23, 1955 A. SALVO PoTATo CHIP MANUFACTURE 3 Sheets-Sheet l Filed DeC.

3 Sheets-Sheet 2 A. SALVO POTATO CHIP MANUFACTURE Aug. 23, 1955 Filed Dec. 7, 1951 Aug. Z3, 1955 A, SALVO 2,715,869

POTATO CHIP MANUFACTURE Filed DGO. '7, 1951 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 2,715,869 Patented Aug. 23, 11955 PGTATO CHIP MANUFACTURE.

Anthony Salvo, Fall River, Mass.

Appilcaton December 7, 1951, Serial No. 260,376

1 Claim. (Cl. 99-404) My present invention is a novel and improved machine for and method of manufacturing potato chips and is directed particularly to improve and perfect the handling and cooking operations.

Heretofore it has been customary to provide along cooking trough or kettle with a suitable heat supply, usually burning gas, fuel oil, or the like, underneath the kettle and in contact with the outside of the kettle bottom. Fluid cooking oil is supplied to the kettle and the cut and sliced potatoes iioat along the surface of the cooking oil and are pushed by paddles, or the like, throughout the length of the cooker.

A serious prior diiculty of such customary methods and apparatus was that the heatv at the bottom of the trough had to be upwards of' 400 F. in order to maintain the temperature of the cooking oil and circulating at approximately 360 at the top where the sliced potatoes were floating. As the high temperature on the bottom fluctuated greatly, it often resulted in overburning the cooking oil at the bottom of the cooker. Furthermore, small or broken particles of the sliced potatoes would drop to the bottom of the trough and burn..

Therefore, in order to protect the main mass of the sliced potatoes floating along the top, a considerable depth of cooking oil was required in the cooker, providing a substantial depth and thus, also, requiring a substantially large amount of oil to be kept in the cooker throughout the days work.

Furthermore, the excessive heat at the bottomv of the cooker caused to deposit, which, accumulating with the burned particles of potatoes that dropped to the bottom of the tank, built up an accumulation of residue, requiring the bottom of the tanks to be scraped by hand and also resulted in the discarding of the entire quantity of cooking oil used because of the overheating, discoloration, and damage.

My present invention is directed to eliminate the didiculties above briefly outlined and to provide a novel process and apparatus which will insure a more uniform cooking of the sliced potatoes, eliminating any possibility of overburning or overheating, preventing particles from dropping to the bottom of the cooking tank, by screening out the small particles before entering the cooker, and furthermore to use a relatively small quantity of cooking oil, viz., three or four inches in depth, to keep the oil in constant circulation by a pump, preserving the cooking oil so used against discoloration or damage so that it can be readily filtered and re-used, being admixed with a supply of new oil, and positively feeding the sliced potatoes at a predetermined depth in the oil, thereby insuring a more uniform cooking, all automatically controlled.

A further advantage is that I prefer to power spray for Washing the slices as they drop from the slicer, in place of former methods of simply blowing the slices to be dropped into water.

Ihese advantages also enable me to employ the highest grade and more expensive cooking oil, such as peanut oil, as a much smaller quantity is required for thecirculation throughout the system, and a permanent lifeof usefulness is obtained because of prevention of discoloration and impairing the efficiency of the oil.

By my novel system of cooking and automatic controls, I am enabled to employ a low oil capacity cooker, which, for example, allows me to add 1600 pounds of oil in a ten hour day, to a 950-pound capacity of oil in the smaller cooker, which gives 700 pounds more than the cooker holds in comparison to prior machines that hold 1900 pounds capacity and are only capable of adding 1300 pounds of oil or shortening.

In carrying out my present invention, I utilize a separate heating boiler to heat the cooking oil, whichl oil is preferably fed by a pump thru a plurality of sets of tubes thru the boiler and thence directly into the cooking trough at a plurality of points. Automatic heat controlling means is provided so that the heated oil is supplied to the cooker at predetermined temperatures and predetermined points along the length of the cooker to thus maintain any desired critical temperature. Thus, instead of having the lire underneath the kettle and the kettle heating the oil in the cooker, I irst heat the oil and it heats the cooker so that no excess degree of heat is involved throughout the depth of the oil. I am thereby enabled to use a relatively shallow and small quantity of cooking oil throughout the length of the cooker to a depth of, for example, three or four inches.

Thus I am enabled to save upwards of one-half the quantity of oil in the circulating system, and by preventing overheating I preserve the efficiency of the cooking oil so used, whereby it can be readily re-used as above noted.

My improved arrangement and process insures-a more uniform product, eliminates all danger of burning, saves undue accumulation of residue at the bottom of the tank, and hence eliminates the daily hand-scraping formerly required; and in combination with my novel screening element, it prevents small broken particles of potatoesfrom going into the cooker andv accumulating at the bottom of the trough.

A further feature of my present apparatus is that I can conduct the tubes carrying the heated oil in circulation directly over the boiler into a plurality of points throughout the length of the cooker, thereby maintaining uniform heat along the oating cooking oil.

For this purpose I supply a larger quantity of heated oil at the potato feeding-in endv of the cooker and conduct supplemental supplies of heated oil by leading the oilcarrying tubes directly from the boiler at a point, 0r` points, intermediate the length of the cooking tank. To' supplement this action, l may also supply a plurality of drainage points directly underneath the cooking tank to allow the partly cooled oil to be withdrawn, regulating such quantity by a valve and, thus, I provide a plurality of circulating stations throughout the length of the tank, and in regulated quantities, withdrawing a part of the cooled oil and feeding in freshly heated cooking oil.

As the sliced potatoes are fed into the tank while cold, it will be appreciatedl that they tend to reduce the tem perature of the cooking oil at that part of the tank and,

hence, as they are carried along I find that the tem-.-

perature may drop slightly; and at such critical points I provide the new heated oil supply and a partial drainage equipment so as to maintain the circulating oil both at the desired depth and critical temperature.

A still further feature consists in my novel spraywashing, screening, drying, sorting, and grading, or the like means which is a distinct novelty in this art so far as I am informed. It is customary to have an assembly of a potato peeler, feeding peeled potatoes into a slicer,"i

and the sliced potatoes may be fed directly into the VY The economy in my use of Y Y a most desirable novelty, Yi

3 Y Y heating tankor thru a Washer and, thence, into the tank, and fromV the end of the tank the now-cooked chips are conducted to the salting`V apparatus and, thence, to a packaging machine.

Y VInYmyV present improved construction of lcontinuous and positively controlled manufacture, I provide a sepa- V rate heating boiler which maybe positioned alongside the cooker and I arrange-VaY potato slicer andYthen Va spray-washing apparatusVwhichYfeeds into a combined feeding, screening, drying,Y and gaugingV member, permiting the small particles or broken pieces of the sliced Yturning to give a doubledy ortripled transmission of the oil to be heated owing thruV the tubes. Said tubes are led in from a manifold 12, into whichV oil is supplied under pressure thru a conduit 14 from a pump 15, actuated by a motor 16 thru a belt 17 toa pulley 18,v as best shown in Figs. 1 and'5. New oil may Y'be admitted in any suitable Way, but as here shown'I potatoes to,be screened out so that YVonly complete, full- Y sized, uniform, and marketable potato slices will be fedVVinto the cooker, resulting VinY more desirable and uniformly sized potato chips Vgoing thru the cooker, and

no oil is wasted on smaller broken particles, and none of'Vsuch objectionable particles clog or cause anl accumulation in the cooker. V

AFurther important features consist in the automatic Vcontrol of the heat supply which will maintain they circulating oilrat aVdesired temperature, aswell also as coni v trol, if desired, of the pumping means which willdetermine the quantity. and speed of circulation thru the Y Y tubes passing thru the boiler and cooker.

I alsodesire to provide the tubes with a substantial downward slant Vthru the boiler and apparatus to thusY Y facilitate the cleaning out of the oil when the heat is Vshut down. Y which will'further clean the tubes after the oil has` been In fact, I contemplate utilizing arblower drained therefrom. Control shut-off means are also utilized tVo shut off; the heat in case of breakage, stoppage, or VY accident, andVto open doors to dissipate the heat, thereby protecting the apparatus,.preventing damage to the heatingV oil.j Y 'Y An additional safety feature 1s that I supply the ,heat` Y ing elements Vsufciently remote or Vspaced'frorn the cooking oil so as to eliminate the tire hazard in the cooker,

the oil itself being enclosed and circulated in pipes, and

thenVconducted to the cooker at various points as above explained. VV V the circulating oil is most important, and the preserving of the eiciency and purity ofthe cooking oil so thatVit can be readily filtered and Vreturned'thruthel circulating tubes Ywhile admixed with such quantity of fresh oil as may be necessary, since Y the potato chips absorb a predetermined amount,-is also an important advantage, while the feeding ofVtheYVslices at a predetermined Vdepth thru the oil in the cooker is Referring to thedrawings Villustrating preferred em-V bodimentsz" V Y V Fig.,1'is a plan view of myV improved apparatus'toY carry outVmy Vnovel process; Y Y

.Frig. 2 is a side view of the cooker or kettle, viewing thesame on the line 2 2 Vof Fig. 1 looking in the Y direction of theVarrows; .Y Y

f VVFVig.V3 is aside elevational view of the PParatus; V Fig...4 is an enlargedA cross-sectional vievfsi on the line 4-4'of Fig. l; L V Y Y .-Fig..5'is an end View looking from the rightV of Fig.

111, andv Fig.Y 6 iVs 'an enlarged cross-sectional view of a modi- 'Y i'cation showing the means for `feeding theuslicedVpo'- Y tatoes Vwhile immersed kin the cooking oil.

YAs shown in the drawings, 1 indicates a brick-enclosed boiler having an `upper extension 2,'wherein are a plurality of lopen hatchways 3 3 along the top and '4 4 V at the sides to permit access for cleaning and Ato Vprovide a plurality of openings to dissipate the heat when the .tire Vis shut off, enclosed by. removable covers 6 6. V A series of burners 7 7, preferably oil or gas, Vare'iitte'd Y at one end in the tiring chamber 8; and along the upper part of the boiler are sets vof oil-carrying tubes 10-'10,

`preferably extending lengthwise of the boiler, and re-.V Y

provide a pipe 20 fromV any suitable source of supply regulated by a valve 21. VThe pump 15 isy arranged to draw a supply of oil from a filtering sump 25'into' whichy the oil is returned after passing thru a cooker and thence thru a lilter vin the sump 25. V

I also provide a by-pass 26 controlled. by a'valve 27 Y extending from Vthe manifold 12 into theV sump 25 so that the pump canVbe operating at normal speed, keeping the oil in forced circulation thru the manifold 12 iV. and

the series of tubes 10. lThese tubesextend in doubled Y' relation and preferably incline downwardly at an angle to yfacilitate cleaning and are led lengthwise of,Y they tire box8, and a plurality of these tubes `deliver 'the heated oil at the opposite end into a trough 29, which,Y in turn, Vdelivers the heated oil into the end of theV cooker 30. Y

This cooker orkettle 30is aluminum 33, this material being found satisfactory to keep the heated oil in condition and prevent tarnishing 'V and discoloring.

, It Will be appreciated that as'the slicedVpotatoes are Y deliveredV at the intakeend of the cookerVSt),` they 'are in aV cold condition and in `order to take care of Y this f situation, I direct a considerable number ofV the tubes 10'carryingV the heated oil from the boiler to the cookerVV suicient toY compensate forY the initial carrying of theVV potato slices thus delivered. Any desiredinumber of the Y' tubes 10 can be directed to the intake end of the cooker.

As here shown, a series of'such tubes, ,Y indicated gen- Y erally at 3,5', may be led directly intothe cooker or thru dil a trough 29, which may beinsulated and covered, but

I prefer to lead a selected numberof the oil-carryingtubes to provide freshY and heated oilVlengthwise of the cooker so as to maintain the proper temperature, viz. approxi- .V 7

mately 340 to 360 F. throughout the cooker. By this means also I may control the temperatureV lengthwise y of Vthe cooker 30, as may be found expedient.

'V YI havey herein illustrated la set of the tubes 36 and 37,' Y Y discharging into the.V cooker Ymidwayrof Ythe length, as

tain the oil inV proper. condition.V

To still further control YtheYheVat supply and condition,l I provide a series ofdrains inthe bottom of thecooker,V

as indicated at 45, 46, and 47 Vto Withdraw the partially cooled oil at the bottom of the;cooker and lead same thru a conduit 50, controlled bya valve 51, back into Y the lilter and sump 25. YY

Y of heating the oil remote from Vth'eecooker or kettle, pre Y I contemplate utilizing anysuitable or desired automatic controls to govern theV heatrthru the burner 7 Y which'may be regulated by temperature or pressure, as Y 'T indicate'dfby a dial 55, or otherwise, soas to ,keep the flow of heated oil from the boiler toV thecooker at the Y 4 In addition, the customaryV or usualV safety devices to shut off the fuel thru the,V

critical temperature desired.

burners 7 will also be utilized. Y Y

As thus 'far described, itwill be Yapprre'eciated that myV Y novel and improved apparatus for the automatic manufacture V.of potato chips, orthe like, utilizing heated oilV as the cookingV element, carries outV my novel process venting the oil in the kettle from Vbecoming overheated preferably arranged in close Y proximity -to and parallel with the boiler 1 and lined with at the bottom, insuring the maintenance of the oil in proper condition, permitting it to be re-used instead of as formerly being thrown away at the end of each days work. Also, by having the cooking kettle spaced, protected, and remote from the fire the danger and hazard of getting the oil either overheated or catching on re is prevented.

In order to supply the sliced potatoes in desired quantity to the cooker, I contemplate utilizing any suitable potato peeler adjacent the feeding end of the cooker 313, wherein the same are led by a chute 56 from the peeler into a slicer 60, which is preferably of the well known Knott Slicing Machine illustrated in patent application Serial No. 250,105 filed October 6, 1951, now abandoned, which automatically slices the potatoes and as the same are dropped from the Slicer 60, I provide a spray-washing apparatus, as indicated at 61, Fig. 3, wherein water under pressure from any suitable source is supplied thru a pipe and into a spraying nozzle in the path of the sliced potatoes as they drop from the Slicer 60 into a receptacle 63, from whence they are delivered into my novel combined screening, drying, and feeding device 66.

This is a perforated rotatable cylindrical screen having a spiral rubber feeding rib, or ribs, indicated in dotted lines at 67, Fig. 3, which screen is rotated in any suitable manner and permits the sliced potatoes to be dried as they are fed to a conveyor 68, leading the sliced potatoes directly into the delivery end of the cooker 30. From thence, the sliced potatoes, which normally flow on the surface of the heated oil 70, may be moved length- Wise of the tank by a series of usual type of paddles 71, 72, 73 and 74. These paddles are generated in the sides of the top of the cooker 30, and the rst paddles 71 rotated by a motor 75 and sprocket chains 76, the other paddles being similarly rotated by connecting sprocket chains 77, 7S, and 79 from a motor 80, or in any other suitable or usual manner as shown in the drawings.

Instead of the paddles 71, 72, 73, 74, or any combination of the same, I prefer to utilize a mesh chain conveying element, as shown in Fig. 6, which will hold .the tioating sliced potatoes underneath the surface of the oil level, preferably at a predetermined depth, and preferably also near the delivery end 40 of the kettle 30.

For this purpose I provide a pair of sprockets indicated at 81 and 82 over which an openwork mesh chain element, the full width of the interior of the cooker, is rotated, said mesh belt or chain 85 acting on top of the oating sliced potatoes as they approach the delivery end of the cooker, thereby depressing them a predetermined depth below the level, thus insuring full and complete cooking of the entire mass of sliced potatoes being fed thru the cooker. This feature is of special importance and a distinct novelty in this art and overcomes the diiculty heretofore found With the use of paddles, which latter tended to raise the sliced potatoes lifting them, or a part of them, out of the cooking oil and, hence, apt to cause a variation in the resultant potato chips, some being overcooked and some being undercooked. By my method of positively submerging the sliced potatoes, either at a portion or throughout the entire extent of their travel in the cooker, I secure a positive and more uniform cooking action. This openwork chain belt 85 may be operated at any speed desired and the sprockets actuated by a belt connection with either of the motors already indicated, or from a separate motor if desired.

At the delivery end 40 of the tank, a conveyor S8 of usual type operated between sprockets 89 and connected with the motor by the belt 90, which may also be utilized to rotate the sprocket chain 79 and the paddles, is arranged whereby the now cooked potato chips are delivered into a trough 91 and thence to the usual sorting and packaging stations.

I claim:

A machine for cooking potato chips, comprising an elongated heater having a firing chamber therein, an elongated cooker disposed adjacent said heater, a series of fuel burners projecting into said chamber from one end of said heater, sets of oil-carrying tubes disposed within said chamber above said burners and extending lengthwise of the chamber, a manifold at one end of said heater externally thereof and with which corresponding ends of all of said tubes are in communication, the opposite ends of one set of tubes communicating with the cooker adjacent the feed end thereof, thev opposite ends of a second set of the tubes communicating with the cooker intermediate the ends thereof, and the opposite ends of a third set of the tubes communicating with the cooker adjacent the discharge end thereof, the first set of tubes being greater in number than that of the second and third set of tubes, an oil sump disposed at said one end of the heater beneath said manifold, a conduit leading from said sump to said manifold, a pump interposed in said conduit for supplying oil to said tubes under pressure, a plurality of oil drains in the bottom wall of said cooker, a conduit beneath said cooker with which said drains are in communication, said conduit being in communication with said sump and being provided with a valve for regulating the draining of oil from the cooker into said sump.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 851,687 McKenzie Apr. 30, 1907 928,795 Prims July 20, 1909 1,234,131 Cleveland July 24, 1917 1,401,945 Morris Dec. 27, 1921 1,659,415 Thomas Peb. 14, 1928 1,743,833 Stall Ian. 14, 1930 1,926,313 Smith Sept. 12, 1933 2,057,366 Chapman Oct. 13, 1936 2,163,977 Ferry June 27, 1939 2,207,316 Ferry Iuly 9, 1940 2,249,792 Skinner July 22, 1941 2,286,644 Pringle et al. June 16, 1942 2,314,871 De Back Mar. 30, 1943 2,427,388 Curran Sept. 16, 1947 2,538,937 Foster Jan. 23, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS 472,838 Great Britain Sept. 30, 1937 

